Lubricating system for piston machines



March 1, 1932. E. H. STEEDMAN LUBRIGATING SYSTEM FOR PISTON MACHINES Filed June 2. 1927 GASheetSP-Sheet l March 1, 1932. E. H. STEEDMAN LUBRICATING SYSTEM FOR PISTON MACHINES Filed Ju'n 2. 1927 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 March 1, 1932. i

E. H. STEEDMAN LUBRICATING SYSTEM FOR PISTON MACHINES Filed June 2. 1927 6 Sheets-Sheet 15 'Mws/vm z.- [Ow/N H STEISDMAN.

March 1, 1932. E. H. STEEDMAN LUBRIQATING SYSTEM FOR PISTON MACHINE Filed June 2, 1927 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 Arro Ia/Var March I, 1932. STEEDMAN 1,847,418

LUBRICATING SYSTEM FOR PISTON MACHINES Filed June 2, 1927 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 March'l, 1932. E. H. STEEDMAN 1,847,418 a LUBRICATING SYSTEM FOR PISTON MACHINES Filed June 2, 1927 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 fig. /5.

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Patented Mar. 1, 1932 UNITED STATES PA-TENT OFFICE 4 EDWIN n. STEEDMAN, or s'r. IoUIs, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO cURr'Is MANUFACTUR- rive COMPANY, or WELLSTON, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION or MISSOURI LUBRICATING sYsrn ron PISTON MACHINES Application filed June 2, 1927. s erialNo. 196,104.

This invention relates to lubricating systems for'machines of the type which comprise a reciprocating piston joined by means of a connecting rod toa crank arm on a rotating shaft, such, for example, as compressors, internal combustion engines, reciprocating pumps, steam engines, etc. 7

One object of iny invention is to provide a lubricating system or apparatus for machines of the general type mentioned,:that isofsimple construction, reliable in operation and of such design that an adequate supply ofoil is assured for the parts of the machine that require practically constant or continuous lubrication when the machine is in operation.

Another object is to provide ,a lubricating apparatus for the crank pin ofapiston machine, which is of such design thatan excessive quantity of oil will not be supplied to the cylinder when themachineis. operated at a high speed. s 1 Another object .is to provide a positive lubricating system or apparatus for abear ing between a connecting rod and a. crank arm, that is not. dependent for its successful operation on valves or otherelements that are liable to fail when the machine is in operation. i I

And still another object is to provide a lubricating system or apparatus that can be easily adjusted or designed so as to supply just the required amountof oil tothe bearings or parts with which it co-operates and whose elements are so constructed-and arranged that they are easily accessible for inspection, repair or cleaning. Other objects and desirable features of my invention will be hereinafter pointed-out. x 1

To this end I have devised a lubricating system or'apparatus that comprises a rotatable member combined with the crank shaft of the machine of which the apparatus'forms a part and provided with an oil chamber of such design that the centrifugal force produced by the rotary movement of said member forces oil into saidchamber and exerts pressure on the oil in said chamber in a direction tending to positively force saidoil through a duct, passageway or conduit which leads toth'e bearing between the connecting rod and thecrank'armon said shaftpan inclined distributing surface adjacent said oil chamber designed so that. centrifugal force causes oil on said inclined surfacetotravel towards said chamber, and means for supplying or delivering oil to said'distributing surface. The oil'chamber in said rotatable member can be formed in various ways. Generally, said oil chamber will be formed by an annular or substantially annular, open groove formed in a surface of said rotatable member that is disposed transversely ofand at substantially right angles to the axis of the crank shaft, and said chamber will have. an outer wall that is undercut or shaped so that the centrifugal force also overcomes the tendency of the oil to, escape laterallyfrom said chamberwhen the machine is in operation. My invention is applicable to single cylinder and multiple cylinder machines, and when it is, embodied in a multiplecylinder point between adjacent connecting rods and is provided with two oil chambers of the kind mentioned and two oil ducts or passageways bearings of the connecting rods that surround the crank pins on. the shaft whichv impart movement to said connecting rods. g In view of the fact that so many different types or kinds of means can be used to supply oil to the'centrifugal pressure chamber or groove of the rotatable member on the crank shaft, I have illustrated in the drawings several forms of my invention," all of which operate on the same general principle, buteach of which isequipped with a slightly different means for keeping the centrifugal pressure chamber supplied with oil;

-Figure 1 is a side elevational View, partly broken away, ofithecrank case. of a two cylinder compressor equipped with a lubricating system constructed in accordance with my invention. i i

Figure l illust-rates my improved lubri-- cating system applied to a single cylinder compressor. V

Figure 2 is an end view' of'said crank case,

. that lead from said chambers to therespective a lubricating apparatus of the kind shown in ply oil to the centrifugal pressure chamber consists of a rotatable ring, partly submerged in the oil in the crankcase and arranged in engagement with the member in which said chamber is formed.

Figure 5 is a, transverse sectional view, tak en on the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view, illustrating a feature that can be added to Figures l and 5.

a crank case illustrating a form of my invention in which a plunger pump is used to supply oil to the centrifugal pressure chamber.

Figure 8 is a transverse sectional view, taken on the line 88 of Figure 7.

Figure 9 is a longitudinal sectional View of the crank caseof a single cylinder machine embodying my invention, in which a rotary pump is used to supply oil to the centrifugal pressure chamber.

Figure 10 is-a transverse sectional view,

taken on the line 1010 of Figure 9.

Figure 11 is a longitudinal sectional view of a crank case, illustrating a form of my invention in which oil is supplied to the centrifugal pressure chamber by gravity from an overhead troughor reservoir in the crank case.

Figure 12 is a transverse sectional View,

taken on the 'line1212 ofFigure 1 1; and

Figure 13 is a longitudinal sectional view of the crank case of a single-cylinder machine embodying my invention, in which oil is fed to the centrifugal pressure chamber from an oiltank or container arranged on theoutside of the crank case of the machine. In-the accompanying drawings which illustrate various forms of my invention, A designates the crank case of a compressor, internal combustion engine, reciprocating pump orother machine equipped with one or more cylinders whose pistons are joined 5 byconnecting rods Bto the crank shaft C of the machine. The connecting rods of such machines-are provided at their lower ends with bearings 1 that surround crank pins 1) on the crank shaft, and when the machine is in operation, it is essential that each crank pin or the connecting rod bearing with which it cooperates receive an adequate supply of oil. One of the main objects of my invention is to provide a lubricating system or apparatus of simple design thatwill positively characteristics of conventional pressure feed systems, butnot the objectionable characteristics of such systems, i.'e., liability of failure caused by sticking or breaking of springactuate d valves or other delicate parts. In

' my improved lubricating system or apparatus the oil that is used to lubricate the crank pin D is forced to said pin or to the connecting rodbearing 1 with which it co-operates by pressure produced by centrifugal force.

This'result can be attained in various ways without departing from the spirit of myinp vention, but in the preferred form of my in- Figure 7- is a longitudinal sectional view ofvention, as herein illustrated, the crank shaft C of the machine has associatedwith same a'rotatable member E that is provided with an oil chamber F from which an oil duct or passageway 3 leads to the outer surface of the crank pin D, as shown in Figures 1, l Qand 3. The member E can be formed integralwit'h the crank shaft, or it can be detachably connected to the crank shaft, and when the invention is embodied in a multiple cylinder machine, as shown in Figure l, the member E can consist of. a substantially diskshaped portion on the crank shaft C that is located between adjacent connecting rods B and which forms portions of the crank arms on the crank shaft that carry the crank pins D. The member E is perferably arranged at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the crank shaft,.and the peripheral edge of said member is bifurcated so as to-forma slot at in same that has parallel, vertically-disposed side walls 5. Two centrifugal pressure chambers of the kind previously referred to, from which oil is forced through ducts that lead to the crank pins, are preferably formed by two annular grooves F in the side walls 5 of theslot in the member E, said grooves being preferably arranged in concentric rela: tion with the axis of the crank-shaft O for ease of construction. The grooves F are open at one side, as shown in Figure 3, so that they will communicate with the slot 4 in the member .E, and the outer walls of said grooves F are undercut or made of such shape that the opposed outer and inner walls w and y of each of said grooves will be disposed at such an angle to 'thevertical surfaces 5 on the'member E in which said grooves afe formed that the centrifugal force produced by the rotary movement of the member E will produce pressure in the grooves F that causes the oil in same to be fed to the ducts or passageways 3 that lead from said grooves to the'crank pins'D. When the crankshaft Cis set in operation any oil that may be on the vertically-disposed surfaces ofthe member E will be thrown radially from the peripheral edge of the member E, butthe oilin the open grooves F in said vertical faces 5'will be effectively prevented fromescaping outwardly from said grooves by reason of the fact that centrifugal force and the undercut outer walls of said grooves combine'or co-operate to hold the oil in the grooves F and exert pressure on said oil in a direction to force it positively through the ducts 3 leading to the crank pins.

Means is provided for automatically sup+ plying oil to the oil pockets or pressure chambers formed by thegrooves F in the member E, and in the form of my invention illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the means just referred to consists of a rotatable wheel G submerged partly ina bath of oil and arranged in frictional engagement with inclined'distributing surfaces 6 on the member E which are disposed at such angles that the -oil supplied to said surfaces by the wheel G will travel by centrifugal force into the grooves F, as shown in Figure 3. The inclined, distributing surfaces 6 are arranged in concentric relation with the axis of rotation of the member E and form continuations. of the inner walls y of the grooves F in the'member E.

My improved lubricating system is applicable to a single cylinder machine, and therefore, I have illustrated it in Figure 1 in connection with a single cylindercompressor, the member E that carries the lubricated surface 6 being connected to the crank shaft;

The oil supply wheel G is arranged directly underneath the rotatable member E, so that a portion of the periphery of said wheel G will bear against the outwardly-inclined surfaces 6 on the member E. A weighty my invention illustrated in Figures 1 and 2,

the wheel G is rotatable mounted on a lever 7'tl1at is. acted upon by a spring 8'tl1at normally exerts pressure on said lever in'a direce tion to hold the wheel G in engagement with the member E. The wheel G can be so disposed that aportion of same'dips into the oil in the bottom of the crank case A,but preferably the wheel G is rotatably mounted in an,

oil receptacle 9 carried by the lever 7 and provided with one or more orifices 10 through which'oil is supplied to the interior of said receptacle 9- from the bath of oil in thebottom of the crank case, said orifice 10 being so disposed that it is always below the level of. the oil in the crank case. By varying the size of the orifice 10 or providing the oil holder 9 with sin-adjustable or calibrated orifice, the quantity of the oil. which the wheel G supplieslto the centrifugal pressure chamber in the member E can be accurately controlled.

shown in Figure 1.

In order to prevent sediment or'foreignmat- 'ter from collecting in the orifice or orifices 10 through which oil is supplied to the oil holdder 9, a screen 11 is arranged over said orifice. The lever 7 that carries the oilholder 9 can be connected to any suitable portion of the crank case, but I prefer to attach the lever 7 and also the spring 8 to a removable hand hole plate on the crank case, as shown in Figure2, so as to enable the oil wheel G and the oil holder 9 in which said wheel rotates to be removed bodily from the crank case for inspection, repair or cleaning. I I

The walls of the cylinder of the machine arelubricated preferably by the oil thrown by centrifugal force from the joints at the ends of the connecting rod bearings 1. The joints at the ends of'the connecting rod bearings 1 are also utilized tosupply oil by centrifugal force to oil distributing members 13 in the upper portion of the crankcase A which are so constructed and'arranged that the oil thrown against the underside of said members from the ends of the connecting rod bearings 1 will flow. downwardly on said members and finally drip from same into oil holes 14 in the crank shaft bearings .15, as I In order to prevent excess of oil that maybe on the vertically-disposed surfaces 5 of the member E from being thrown upwardly into the cylinders of the machine, and thus causing the cylinders to receive an excessive supply of oil, an oil guard 16 is arranged over the rotatable member E.

From the foregoing it will be seen that a lubricating system or apparatus of the construction above described insures oil being supplied to the cylinders ofthe machine,to the main crank shaft bearings .and to the bearings on the connecting rods that surround the crank p-ins, the oil being supplied under pressure to the crank pins at such a rate and in such a manner as to make it practicable to operate the machine at a high speed without liability .ofcausing the cylinders to, receive an excessive supply of oil, as is liable to occur in a machine whose crank pins and cylinder walls are lubricated by splashing devices on the crank arms that dip into the bath of, oil in the bottomfof the crank case. In my improved lubricating system a fairly definite quantity of oil is supplied to the connecting rod bearing 1 by pressure produced by' centrifugal force, and-the oil which escapes from the ends of the connecting rod bearings ,1 is, used to lubricate the cylinder.

an-annu1ar groove for simplicity of manufacture. The-oil chamber F, however, does not'have to be continuous, or of annular form; but can be any kind of pocket, straight or curved, with undercut walls 00 and 1 formed in any manner and disposed at an angle to the surfaces 5, as previously described.

In the form of my invention shown in Figures 4: and 5, the means that is used tosupply oil to the centrifugal pressure chamber of the member E consists of an oil ring G positioned in the annular slot 4 in the member E and arranged so that the lower portion of said ringis normally submerged in'the bath of oil in the bottom of'the crank case, the weight of said ring G causing it to beheld in frictional engagement with the outwardlyinclined, distributing surfaces 6 on the member E that lead to the oil grooves F,said distributing surfaces being disposed in concentric relation with the axis of rotation of the member E. A roller-17 on the bottom of the crank case that laps over said ring may be used to prevent the ring G from getting out of position. w I

If desired, 'co-operating teeth 18 can be formed on the inner side of the oil'ring G and on the bottom of the slot at in the member E, as shown in Figure'6, so as to positively rotate said oil ring and cause it to feed oil upwardly from the bath of oil in the crank case to the surfaces 6' of the member E. The structure shown in Figures 4, 5 and 6 is claimed specifically in my pending application for patent Serial No. 289,854, filed July 2, 1928. r

In the form of my invention shown in Figures 7 and 8, a plunger pump G is arranged in the'crank case directly underneath the ro-.

tatable member E and said member E is provided with a cam or is constructed in such a way that the rotary movement of said member actuates'the piston ofthe pump Gr and causesje'ts of 'oil to be projected upwardly onto the outwardlyeinclined surfaces 6 which are disposed in concentric relation with the axis of rotation of the member E, the oil thrown onto said'surfa'ces being carried out wardly and laterally into the grooves-F in the member E, and thence into the ducts or passageways 3 that lead to'the connecting rod bearings 11. As shown in Figures T'and 8, a'screen 9 is'arra'nged over theintakeof the pump G so as to prevent sediment or foreign matter from entering said pump and interfering with the operation of same.

chine in which-the means used to supply oil to thecentrifugal'pressure chamber in the rotatable member E consists of a gear pump G operated by a gear 19 on themember E and provided witha discharge pipe 20-whose upper end is arranged above the slot 4 in the ing surfaces 6 of the member E, which distributing surfaces 6 are disposed in concentric relation with the axis of rotation of the member E.

In the form of my invention shown in Figures 11 and 12, the rotatable element of the apparatus in which the centrifugal pressure chamber is formed, is-composed of a member E detachably connected with the crank shaft and constructed from two parts that are connected together and held in operative relationship with the crank shaft by means of bolts 21. The member E comprises a slot i and concentrically-disposed distributing surfaces of the kind previously described, and oil is supplied to said distributing surfaces from an oi holder or reservoir 22 arranged above said member and provided with a hole.

through which oil drips, the said reservoir being supplied with oil by an oil throwing device 23 on the member E that dips into the bath of oil in the bottom of the crank case and throws some of the oil upwardly into the trough 22 at each cycle of operations of the crank shaft.

' In the formof my invention illustrated in Figure 13 oilis supplied to a concentricallydisposed distributing surface 6 on the rotatable member E by an' oil drip device 2e arranged above the member E in alignment with the slot 4 in same and connected with groove in said member to which oil is supplied -by centrifugal force-from the inner surface of-said slot, a duct or passageway leading from said groove to said crank pin, and an oil supplying wheel partially submerged in a bath of oil and contacting at its pleripheral edge with the inner surface of said s ot. a

2. In a machine of the kind described, a

crank shaft provided with a crank pin, a ro- In Figures 9 and 10 I have illustrated my invention embodied in a single cylinder matatable member combined with the crank shaft and provided with an undercut oil groove, a duct or passageway leading from 7 3. In a machine of the character described, a crank shaft provided with a crank pin, a rotatable member combined with said crank shaft and provided with an oil groove constructed so that centrifugal force created by the rotary movement ofsaid member tends to force oil into said groove and out through said oil duct to the crank pin, an oil supplying wheel arranged in engagement with said member for feeding oil to the groove in said member, a holder in which said oil wheel is rotatably mounted, and means for maintaining an approximately constant level of oil in said holder.

[5 4:. In a machine of the character described, a crank shaft provided with a crank pin, a. rotatable member combined with said crank shaft and provided with an oil groove constructed so that centrifugal force created by the rotary movement of said member tends to force oil into said groove and into a duct leading to the crank pin, an oil supplying wheel arranged in engagement with said member for feeding oil to the groove in said member, a holder in which said oil wheel is rotatably mounted, means for maintaining an approximately constant level of oil in said holder, a spring-actuated lever that carries said holder, and a removable hand hole plate on the crank case of the machine that sustains said lever.

5. .In a machine of the character described, a crank shaft provided with a pair of crank pins, connecting rods joined to said crank pins, a member on the crank shaft arranged between said connecting rods and provided in its peripheral edge with a slot whose inner edges are formed by oppositely-inclined surfaces that slope outwardly or away from the axis of rotation of the crank shaft, undercut oil grooves in said member to which oil is supplied by said oppositely-inclined surfaces, ducts or passageways leading from said grooves to said crank pins, and an oil supplying wheel partially submerged in a bath of oil and provided at its peripheral edge with surfaces that contact with the oppositely-inclined surfaces on said rotatable member.

6. In a machine of the kind described, a

crank shaft provided with a crank pin, a rotatable member combined with the crank shaft and provided with a centrifugalpressure chamber, a duct or passageway leading from said chamber to said crank pin, an inclined surface on said rotatable member for delivering oil to said chamber, and an oil wheel partly submerged in a bath of oil and arranged in engagement with the vinclined distributing surface on the rotatable member.

EDWIN H. STEEDMAN. 

